Semua Bab A 14-day Marriage Contract : Bab 1 - Bab 4

JACQUELINE“I’ve been banging on your door since morning and you’ve refused to come out, eh?” my landlord’s voice thundered through the phone.“I know you’re in there! Just so you know, you can’t keep living in my house for free! Four years, Jackie! Four years! You’re a chronic debtor! Pay me my money!”I gripped the phone tighter, my throat suddenly dry. “Sir, I—I—”“You, you what?!” he snapped before I could finish. His voice roared in my ears, and I closed my eyes tightly, inhaling deeply through my nose.“I’m sick and tired of your excuses! Pay up or pack out of my house, do you hear me?” And just like that, he hung up.The silence that followed felt louder than his shouting. I bit hard on my lower lip, my eyes falling to the frail figure lying motionless on the hospital bed.My daughter.Eight years old, and her face looked ghostly pale, her lips dry and blood red. My chest tightened painfully at the sight. I reached out with trembling fingers to gently smooth her hair, a quiet

JACQUELINE My hands trembled as I read the messages over and over, my heart hammering in my chest, each beat harder than the last one. I clicked on the contact info, but all I could see was generic nothing specific. My mind raced—could this be a prank? A scam? Or something else entirely? But the more I tried to make sense of it, the less I could figure out. What are the odds that a random stranger would offer to pay my daughter’s medical bills in exchange for marriage? A hundred apparently. Or could this be Peter playing some dumb jokes on me right now?My phone beeped in my hands, another message came in.-It’s your choice. If you agree, the payment will be handled instantly. We’ll discuss terms when I say so-If I agree? I’ll be damned if I don’t agree! I didn’t even hesitate, I didn’t even consider any nonsense pros and cons because as far as I was concerned, if this agreement would make Jess okay, then that was all the pros I need. My fingers flew to the reply bar. It could be